She was laid down under a United States Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1102) on 6 February 1943 at Vancouver, Washington, by the Kaiser Shipyards; launched on 15 September 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Frederick Carl Sherman, the wife of Rear Admiral Frederick Sherman; and commissioned on 7 November 1943, with Captain Hames R. Tague in command.

The carrier operated in the Puget Sound area conducting structural firing tests and making stops at Port Townsend, Sinclair Inlet, and Seattle before sailing south on 6 December.

On 16 February, after loading supplies and embarking Army and Navy officers for transportation, Wake Island set course for Recife, Brazil, the first stop on her voyage to Karachi, India.

The highlight of her cruise came on 2 July, when one of her Grumman TBM Avengers intercepted the German submarine U-543 off the coast of Africa between the Canary and Cape Verde Islands, making its way home after an unsuccessful patrol in the Gulf of Guinea.

The pilot, Ensign Frederick L. Moore, braved heavy anti-aircraft fire from U-543, while making two bombing attacks which sank the U-boat.

TG 22.6 began her next serious encounter with the enemy two minutes before noon on 2 August, when Douglas L. Howard sighted a U-boat's conning tower some eight miles (13 km) away.

The carrier entered San Francisco Bay on 28 November, and moored at the Naval Air Station Alameda, California, where she embarked two new aircraft squadrons before heading for Hawaii the following day.

She moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor on 5 December, detached squadrons VC-9 and VPB-149, and disembarked personnel, planes, and equipment.

Late that evening, she loaded ammunition from a barge and got underway at 0642, bound for the Philippines and the forthcoming invasion of Luzon, in company with a tremendous fleet which had gathered for the operation.

Wake Island's surface search radar was jammed by enemy transmission, and the escort carrier went to general quarters at 1714.

One minute later, a Japanese single-engine plane appeared overhead in a steep diving attack on Ommaney Bay, some 4,200 yards (3,800 m) away.

Fire immediately flared from that carrier's flight and hangar decks, and after 20 minutes, her crew abandoned Ommaney Bay under a dense cloud of black smoke.

She caught fire and dropped behind, but her efficient damage control efforts enabled her to resume her position in the formation in only 51 minutes, with her flight deck out of commission.

D-day for the invasion of Iwo Jima was 19 February; and on that day, Wake Island operated as before, flying 56 spotting sorties and firing 87 rockets.

The next day, Wake Island was detached and ordered to proceed to a rendezvous point east of Iwo Jima.

The following day, she took station some 35 miles (56 km) from the southern tip of Iwo Jima and flew 55 spotting sorties, expending 205 rockets.

On 5 March, she received a message of special interest from Commander, TU 52.2.1, Rear Admiral Clifton Sprague: "If your ship is as good as your Air Department and Squadron, it is a standout.

At 1744, a Japanese single-engine aircraft plunged at the ship from a high angle and missed the port forward corner of the flight deck, exploding in the water abreast the forecastle.

While she remained there undergoing inspection by the fleet salvage officer, special precautions were taken to guard against possible Japanese suicide swimmers from islands of the cluster not yet secured.

At Kaika Harbor, Kerama Retto, she loaded bombs, rockets, and dry and fresh provisions, despite many enemy aircraft in the vicinity.

The carrier made rendezvous with Cowanesque for refueling, and once her tanks were full, returned to the operating area off Okinawa on 6 June 1945.

Wake Island continued on support operations until 15 June when Rear Admiral Durgin landed on the carrier for an official visit.

Arriving back at Guam, the carrier unloaded ammunition and aviation spares and took on board 300 sacks of United States mail along with 10 Corsair and 20 Curtiss SB2C Helldiver duds for transportation, then sailed for Pearl Harbor in company with Cape Esperance and Bull.

A week later, the ship arrived at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, where she unloaded her cargo and took on board 138 enlisted men and 49 officers as passengers to the continental United States.

Personnel of VF-41 and representatives of Ryan Aeronautical came on board during the morning of 5 November, and the escort carrier got underway from the Naval Air Station, San Diego, in company with O'Brien.

Ensign J. C. West took off from the USS Wake Island in a Ryan FR-1 Fireball, a combination prop-jet design, and soon experienced problems with the Wright R-1820-72W Cyclone radial piston engine.